Reset: A Traveler in a Strange World
by MrsGrizzley
Summary: An original character joins the world of Ivalice and help is sent to her from an old friend in the form of an old friend. Follows FF XII with additions and changes. Chapters Nine and Ten just posted, sorry for the delay. Responses always appreciated.
1. Chapter 1

Okay, part of this is going to be familiar, and part of it is going to be drastically different. Once upon a time I played Final Fantasy XII and became so entranced by the story that I had to add to it. I had to include one of my long-running characters into the story.

Well, that story was A Traveler in a Strange World.

I began working on rewrites of some of the chapters, adding material to them and developing them further in terms of actual game dialogue, but that fizzled around Chapter 5 or so, and I'm still not happy about the ending. Be aware that when the time comes, that part will be drastically different.

Recently, though, I discovered elements of her backstory that I had not known at the time I wrote Traveler and I found a fanfic here that turned all the things I had written on its collective ear. It's a What If situation too priceless not to explore.

So I'm giving up on rewriting the original A Traveler in a Strange World. Instead I'm going with a reset on it. A new story, new elements, some familiar, some not, and more firmly crossed with her backstory . . . which happens to be in Final Fantasy VII. The story which inspired the change is called The SOLDIER of Ivalice. It is well worth the read, trust me. Oh, and I'm shortening some of the chapters, splitting them up so I don't quite know how long this is going to go.

Enjoy, and as always, I live for reader response.

* * *

Reset: A Traveler in a Strange World

Final Fantasy XII Crossover Fanfiction

By Maracae Grizzley

Chapter One

The phone rang in Tifa's bar on the outskirts of Edge. Now that Geostigma was all but gone, the WRO had turned its efforts to rebuilding the cities which had been decimated by the destruction. The population loss, though, would be generations in repairing but at least, with efforts to find cleaner magical-electrical sources, the Planet would find ways to heal itself.

The phone rang again.

Tifa started to walk upstairs to answer it when the ringing abruptly cut off and a man's voice, low and still, spoke. "Strife Delivery Service, Cloud speaking."

She nodded to herself, so Cloud had gotten the phone this time. At least he was home today. They had all been kept very busy lately with some of the travel and delivery opportunities which had presented themselves following the defeat of Kadaj. They needed the money, goodness knows everyone had problems making a living these days, but sometimes it was difficult for all of them when he was gone so often.

At least he had started coming back to them when the delivery was done, unlike when he had Geostigma.

Tifa wondered who was calling them and walked into the office to see Cloud standing by the desk, his face bloodless and white, his eyes wide and staring at nothing. He stood completely still. Tifa started to ask him something when the phone, which was still in his hand and was still raised to his ear, dropped to the ground with a loud clatter. Cloud didn't try to pick it up again. He turned and ran for the door downstairs.

"Cloud!" Tifa called after him, "What is it? Who called?"

"No time," he called back, "it's Maracae. She's dying." His words were cut off as he ran outside and she heard the roar of an engine, Fenrir, Cloud's motorcycle, fill the air.

Tifa remembered Maracae from their journey two years before. Like Cloud, she had claimed to be former SOLDIER, and like Cloud that claim was somewhat inaccurate. Maracae wasn't SOLDIER because she was something else entirely, even though she'd grown up around SOLDIER and Shin-Ra and the scientists responsible for creating Sephiroth and Genesis.

Avalanche knew the truth about Maracae, and why she alone of all of them could use magic without materia. Maracae had come from another world before being born in their own. She had come to Midgar under her own power and had caused herself to be physically born through a woman of their world. Through Lucrecia Crescent.

Maracae was Sephiroth's kid sister, and she was one of them, one of Avalanche. She'd stood against her brother and with Cloud, to defeat the One-Winged Angel and Meteor.

Fenrir roared again as Cloud raced away from the bar in a desperate run to save the life of a friend. He had failed to save Aerith two years before; he couldn't fail Maracae, too.

---

It's said that a person's life flashes before their eyes as they are dying.

All Maracae could think was that it wasn't fair. But then, since when had her life been fair?

And goodness knew she'd had the chance to do more living and see more places and do more things than anyone she had known back when she had been merely mortal and a different person entirely. She'd had so many names over the centuries that some of them she had even forgotten, Alais, Sakura, Goldeneyes, Genevion, Maracae, and lately, simply Mara.

The Lord had dealt bitterly with her, indeed.

She fell to the ground, all strength gone from her legs and coughed weakly. Standing above her was a twisted abomination of a humanoid wolf with ebony black fur, streaked by white across his brow. Two great black wings sprung from his back, wings that made her think for a moment of a different brother entirely, and her own blood covered his hands.

He was her brother, this demonic creature who would be her death. Wolf Eyes Dreamsail, the scourge of his family, the Corrupter and the Hunter, bound to destroy those tied to him by blood, was going to be the one to finally kill the last Motherborn Shard, Goldeneyes Dreamsail herself.

He howled in a brief flare of grim delight as he prepared to take the final blow.

Maracae flinched away from him, curling her broken and bloody body around itself. She had no defenses left. She was dying, and no one knew where she was. No one knew how to find her or where she had gone. There was no one who would know enough to mourn her. She would simply vanish and not reappear.

It would be months or even years before her sisters would even wonder what happened.

She'd just wanted to get away for a couple days, clear her head as it was. She had been going home to Avalanche, hoping that they would accept her back for a while. She should have been paying attention, or Wolf Eyes wouldn't have caught her unawares, wouldn't have had the chance to seal her powers so that she couldn't fight back against him.

It wasn't fair. But nothing ever was.

And then, as if to only make it worse, she heard the roar of a motorcycle engine gunning towards them.

---

Cloud didn't know what the creature was, but it stood on legs like a man, and had a pair of great black-feathered wings spread from its back, and it stood above a broken form covered in blood, a form with blonde hair with a streak of white shining in the sunlight.

He only saw it for a moment before it struck down at Maracae and there was a flash of light and he was alone on what had just been a battlefield. He jumped off Fenrir, letting the motorcycle skid off to the side, and landed beside where Maracae had been not a moment earlier. Her blood was still soaking into the earth.

He touched the red-drenched mud for a moment and then clenched his fist and punched the blameless earth in frustration and grief over his failure. He had failed her. Yet again he had failed the ones he cared about.

There was a ringing at his side and he grimaced in pain, the tears stinging his eyes as he reached for his PHS cell phone. He flipped it open and brought it to his ear with a smooth, practiced motion. "I was too late." Oh, how the words killed him.

_She's not dead._ The voice was the same as before. It wasn't Tifa, as he had thought, it was the mysterious caller who had called to warn him about the threat to Maracae in the first place. _She survived. I need your help if we are to send aid to her._

He nodded shortly. "What do you need?"

_Bring Zack's sword to the old Church. I'll meet you there._ He heard a click and the phone was silent.

Cloud stood and walked to retrieve Fenrir. He had to retrieve the Buster Sword from where he had left it as a memorial to a better SOLDIER than he.

---

The old church still stood in what was still abandoned Midgar.

Well, abandoned except for stragglers and those damaged by experiments by madmen scientists like Hojo had been. Shinra's secrets were still finding their way to the light of day, even after two years.

Cloud left Fenrir at the doors and walked in to see a woman standing at the edge of the hole in the floorboards, looking down into the Holy-tinted water that had been their salvation from Geostigma.

Her hair was long, and reddish-blond, and he could see a streak of white running through her hair. She wore a white blouse with a short, green, patchwork leather vest, brown leggings, brown leather moccasin boots, and a red sash. She had a string of beads strung around one wrist like a series of bracelets.

He walked up, carrying the weather-worn Buster Sword, and set it point down, between them. "I'm here."

She turned to look at him and he realized that her ears were pointed, and that her brilliant green eyes glowed almost exactly like his did. "That you are. My thanks, Cloud."

"What are we doing?" He had to ask. "How is this going to help Maracae?"

She didn't answer him directly. She reached and took his hand and gently pulled off the glove he wore, showing him the scar upon his palm. "Blood magic is old magic. The resonances that are carried by the exchange of blood are profound, and surpass almost anything developed since then. It's why the basic rituals are the same from world to world, culture to culture. The three of you are bound by the most ancient and powerful of magics. Friendship, and a promise that no matter where you go, you will always find each other." She looked up from his hand to meet his eyes. "I cannot send you, but I can send him." She paused. "If he is willing."

Cloud's eyes widened in surprise. "You can do that?"

She nodded. "It is a simple matter to weave a thread back onto the Loom. But he must be willing. He is content to be with her again, no matter the circumstances of their separation or their reunion Beyond. I will coerce no one." She sighed. "Step back from the sword."

Cloud took a step back, leaving the sword standing on the wooden planks of the floor, with only his hand to steady it. He felt something wrap itself around the sword and he pulled his hand back only to see the sword remain steady. He took another step and the Buster Sword began to glow slightly, the weathering repairing itself, the steel brightening back to a new shine. The only thing which did not change were the three gashes across the front of it, like the scraping of claws across the steel.

The girl lifted her hands and the sword floated through the air until it hovered above the water. As Cloud watched the light grew brighter and he saw a form appear on the other side of the sword from them. By then the light was so bright that it was painful to look on, and it made his eyes water, but he didn't look away. He couldn't. He saw the shadow of what could be dark hair, but it was too unclear to be certain.

The form reached a hand out to take the Buster Sword by the handle, and then both vanished.

The girl fell to her knees in sudden exhaustion and Cloud rushed to her side. "Are you alright?"

She nodded. "Yes. It will be alright, now. Somehow . . . somehow he'll find his way back to Maracae. He can go places we cannot right now."

Cloud nodded. "Do you need my help?"

She shook her head. "No. I need to warn the rest of us. Wolf Eyes will not take kindly to losing his prey, but he must lose this one. We need the hope she will one day carry."

"I will find my way to her someday, too."

The girl smiled. "As you wish. I shall see it arranged." She stood, then, and Cloud stood with her. "Go home to your family. Things will work out. You will see."

Cloud nodded and turned to leave. She could tell him anything she wanted. He still blamed himself for failing to save Maracae when he had the chance. The girl stayed behind, looking out at the water long after he was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Reset: A Traveler in a Strange World

Final Fantasy XII Crossover Fanfiction

By Maracae Grizzley

Chapter Two

Larsa found the entrance. The dark haired hume boy was barely eleven years of age, and strangely caught between being very boyish and being mature beyond his years. He was the youngest son of the Emperor of the Archadian Empire, raised since infancy for leadership and political intrigue, not to mention martial valor.

This particular afternoon Larsa was out for a picnic with his elder, and only surviving, brother – Vayne. Like Larsa, Vayne was dark haired, but he was grown almost to adulthood and was breathtakingly handsome, whereas Larsa was merely adorable. There had been two brothers older still, but Vayne had seen to their deaths for treason.

In any event, it was during some supervised exploring that Larsa found the hidden doorway that led to a tunnel that opened into a huge cavern that was flooded with natural sunlight and filled to the ceiling with plants and trees and flowing brooks.

Upon seeing this paradisiacal glory Larsa, who was still a child, ran forward in excitement, escaping his brother's grasp and that of their guardsmen. With a laugh of delight, he took off running through the trees.

And ran right into her.

A girl, maybe three years older than Larsa – perhaps fourteen years of age – dressed in a strange garment that molded itself to her body from elbows to knees in rich blue and green. She had bright, golden blonde hair and a streak of white flowing through it. Wing-shaped earrings dangled from her ears and at her throat sat a necklace of a bird-in-flight. But most astonishing were her eyes – exactly the color of molten gold. She carried no visible weapon and seemed as surprised by Larsa as Larsa was by her.

Then the guardsmen came upon them and Vayne in the lead.

The girl looked up at Vayne and her eyes widened in surprise, and perhaps something else as she grabbed Larsa's wrist and pulled him around behind her, placing herself between Larsa and his brother. "You can't have him. I won't let you hurt him." There was a moment of stunned silence. "I swear it. If you try to hurt him I'll kill you."

The guardsmen didn't know what to say or to do – they all looked at Vayne, who struggled to restrain a smile that seemed to want to spread across his face. He bowed, instead, to the girl. "My lady," he said, using his most charming manner, "I assure you, I mean the lad no harm. I am his brother."

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "That's not very reassuring. My experience with brothers is about like my experience with fathers – not altogether positive."

Larsa quickly stepped back around her and took both her hands in his. She looked at him and smiled, almost involuntarily. "His words are true." Larsa told her, "I swear this to you. Let us prove ourselves." Her expression softened further. Larsa took that as proof that his words were working and decided to change the subject. "Do you live here?" The distraction seemed to work and soon the girl was giving them all the grand tour, accompanied by the guardsmen, naturally.

She showed them where she slept, the trees she climbed for fruit, and the places where she dug for roots. She showed them her swinging vines and her swimming pond.

"How long have you been here?" Vayne asked.

She shrugged, still wary of him. "I am not sure. A long time. I lost track."

"What is your name?" Larsa wanted to know.

She sighed. "I can't remember, Little One. There hasn't been anyone to call me by one."

"Not a one? You are all alone here?"

"Until now, Little One."

The sun had started to sink in the sky outside the cavern and the light within to darken into evening. "Larsa," Vayne called, "it is time to depart."

Larsa looked back at his brother. "But we can't leave her here all alone again. It would not be right."

"Have you asked her about it? You are speaking of taking her from her home."

Larsa turned pleading eyes onto the girl. "Please come to our home with us. You can be my sister and I can show you the world beyond this cavern. There are so many things I want to show you."

The girl looked stunned. "Your sister . . ."

Vayne quirked an eyebrow at the offer of adoption. He had a few suspicions about this girl – having her so close would provide ample opportunity for observation.

Larsa continued. "I know that you said that you had not had much in the way of luck with brothers, but luck can change." He paused for a moment, "and I don't have any other sisters."

She smiled at him, softly. "I don't believe I've had a little brother like you before." He smiled, hopeful, at her. She took a deep breath. "I would need a name. If I were to be your sister."

Larsa crowed joyously.

---

Later, in private audience with the Emperor, Vayne spoke with their father as he had promised Larsa that he would. "Larsa wishes your personal approval of this adoption."

"And your thoughts?"

"Her first act was to place herself between Larsa and a perceived threat. I am impressed both by her instincts and by her endurance of long isolation. Larsa wants her for a sister and you have no other daughters. At the least, we know where her loyalties lie. If you wished, you could say that it is Larsa who is doing the adopting, with your blessing."

The Emperor thought a moment. "Very well. I would meet this girl my sons wish for me to call Daughter."

---  
The girl was ushered into audience with the Emperor by guardsmen who then left her to stand outside the doors. The Emperor sat on his throne behind a table and beckoned her forward. "Come here, young lady."

She stepped forward. "Yes, sir?"

He frowned slightly. "I am no mere knight."

She flushed. "I am aware of that, your – Excellency? Eminence? Dominance?" She appeared to be searching for a word that would not be found. "I am untutored in the proper forms of address, your Imperial Majesty."

A corner of his mouth quirked in what might have been a smile. "So I am given to understand. My youngest son wishes for me to grant you the title Imperial Daughter."

She flushed a deeper red. "That would be a great honor." He could almost see the change in her thinking as his word choice registered. Did this girl carry her thoughts on her face? "Youngest? But that term implies at least three . . . I thought there was only Vayne and Larsa." She looked up at the Emperor and turned the exact red of his robes. "Begging your pardon, Emperor."

Again, his mouth formed what might have been the ghost of a smile. "You have been away from other humes a long time."

She nodded. "But I have always been apt to try to eat my feet with ill-considered speech. I am not practiced in discretion or politesse. I am blunt and on occasion rude. I just thought that you would rather know my faults at the outset."

"You show remarkable self awareness."

"I am all that I appear to be – I just do not appear to be all that I am." She looked strangely uncomfortable, as if she were spilling secrets and regretted it.

"Explain yourself." His tone was commanding, and would not be refused.

She sighed. "I am everything you see. I am rude, and crude, and utterly barbaric. I am the foolish barbarian child who speaks the truth because I can and because I am not supposed to know any better. I adore Larsa, your younger son. I would do anything to protect him . . . and under other circumstances, my resources would be enormous. As a result of my confinement in the cavern, though, I am left with only myself. If you take me into your household, name me Daughter and grant me position, then I will be grateful for your uncommon generosity and you will gain the benefit of a tame barbarian in your court to speak what others will not so that you may judge response. I doubt that you will lose in this." She paused, and then continued. "But I have a past, and secrets that I hide, and should that past, or those secrets become threatened, or a threat, I will do what I must to protect Larsa even to the surrendering of my life." She looked up to meet the Emperor's gaze. "But I swear, should that come about, I will tell you all, or at the least all that you would understand."

The Emperor nodded solemnly. "Very well," he said, accepting her sworn oath, "Daughter."

---  
Larsa and his recently adopted sister stood looking at a large, illuminated map of Ivalice, their world. The young prince had spent several delightful weeks introducing his sister to the Imperial City, Archades, and all the wonders it held.

This day, though, they studied maps. "So this is what you named me after." There was a note of wonder in her voice.

He nodded. "Isn't she pretty?" He pointed to a large area on the map. "This is us, the Archadian Empire, to the north and east. This," he pointed to another large portion of the map, "is the Rozarrian Empire, to the south and west. They are not our friends."

Ivalice nodded. "Competing superpowers rarely are. And right in the middle . . ."

"Are the kingdoms of Nabradia and Dalmasca."

"An unenviable position, that, being the only buffer between two unfriendly Empires. Have they allied to each other?"

"They are sisters, their royalty descended from the sons of the Dynast-King."

"So it's an old alliance, or an old enmity, knowing some families. Which is it for them?"

"Old alliance. One which may flower anew. Dalmasca's royal daughter and Nabradia's royal son are of similar age."

Ivalice sighed, sounding ages old for a moment. "Alliance marriages are difficult. Loveless ones, even more so."

They were silent for a moment. Larsa broke the silence with a shrug. "There is talk of bringing both countries under our guidance in any event."

"That would be stupid." Ivalice was harshly blunt.

Larsa blinked in surprise. "Why?"

"They are the only buffer you have. If you absorb them, then Rozarria has to move to defend her borders. The Empire doesn't want to share a border with an unfriendly, competitive superpower."

"You are truly insightful." Vayne stepped into the room from a shadowed doorway. He smiled as Ivalice stepped between him and Larsa. "One might question how a girl of your tender years and long isolation came by such wisdom, but no matter. The Empire may not want a shared border, but she might not have a choice. If Archadia does not gather Dalmasca and Nabradia, then Rozarria will."

After Vayne left, the conversation drifted from geo-political explanations to the governmental arrangements of the Empire – having both Emperor and Senate.


	3. Chapter 3

Reset: A Traveler in a Strange World

By Maracae Grizzley

Chapter Three

Ivalice was frantic, and desperate. It had been a year since she had become the Imperial Daughter and she wanted nothing more than to escape this celebration in her honor. She saw a large suit of plate armor walking towards where she had ducked into an alcove. One of the Judges.

She still wasn't certain she trusted the Judges. But this one . . . she could tell by the helmet style that this was Judge Zecht, and he had been kind to her. She looked up at him as he turned towards her. He had seen her. "Lady Ivalice?" His voice rang hollowly in the metal of his helmet. He was curious, and concerned.

"Please," she begged, "hide me."

The decision was only a moment to make. He calmly took a step and turned, putting his back to the young Imperial Princess and covering her in his shadow and his cloak. It was just in time, too, because no sooner was she hidden then Doctor Cid walked by, muttering to himself about stones and nethicite and some hidden potential.

When he was gone again, Judge Zecht stepped to the side again and turned to look at Ivalice. "Highness, what are you afraid of? All of the Imperial guards would stand to protect you. I myself would fight for you. What has you so frightened?"

Ivalice sighed and made the choice to trust this Judge. "It's Doctor Cid. I have . . . I have to get out of Archades, and I have to go tonight. Please, I cannot let that man sink his claws into me. I beg you."

Zecht sighed. For his part, he didn't like the Doctor either. The man made him feel uneasy. But the scientist was trusted by the Imperial family, and his work had led to a great many innovations which made the Empire stronger. "Would it not be better to speak to your father about this matter?"

Ivalice shook her head. "I'll leave a letter for him explaining everything, but I have to go and I have to go tonight. Please, Judge Zecht, I need wings to fly from the cage as it closes in on me. I have seen what a man such as Cid can do out of nothing more than idle curiosity. I have suffered at the hands of one like him. Never again. Please."

Slowly, Zecht nodded. "I am commanded to depart this night to see to matters on the field with our armies. I can carry you from here hidden among my personal equipment. But I must state that I do not like this, Lady Ivalice. I do not like this at all."

She sighed and nodded as well. "I would not ask if it were not of utmost urgency, and if I were not without any other options. I cannot allow Larsa to be threatened to secure my cooperation with my own torture."

For a long time, Zecht wondered just how much of her words were hyperbole, and how much of them were nothing less than the bare, understated truth.

---

Larsa found Ivalice in her room packing a bag as quickly as she could gather her few important things. "What are you doing?"

"I'm running away, what does it look like I'm doing?" There was a note of hysteria to her voice. She threw a garment into her bag.

"Running away? Why?" Larsa was stunned.

Ivalice sat down abruptly. "Long explanation or short one, Little Brother? Doctor Cid has started looking at me lately and if I don't leave, tonight, I won't be able to escape him and I won't be any man's experiment ever again." She really didn't want to explain this again, but she had no choice. Larsa meant everything to her. She burst into tears and Larsa awkwardly sat down beside her, trying to offer comfort.

"What happened?"

She took a deep breath. "I'm a Traveler, or, I'm supposed to be one. I've got powers, telekinetic, telepathic, Illusion-skills, teleportation and so on, but they've been sealed so I can't use them and I don't know why. This isn't the first time I've been in child guise, I suppose if you placed all my lifetimes end to end I would be older than the Empire itself, nor the first time I didn't know the world when I entered it, but the last time this happened, the last time I found myself in a world I didn't know, things went bad. Very bad." Her body started shuddering in remembered pain.

"Tell me, Sister." He sounded bigger than he felt. He was afraid of what she was confiding, but he was also very curious.

"I entered the world because I was running from grief. I had gone mad, and recovered from it, but the scars lingered, and still do. I wanted to be someone new for a change. I could, as a Traveler, cause myself to take shape in a woman's quickened womb and be literally born as a sibling to her child. I found a woman who was going to conceive. She was a good woman, in love with a good man, her guardsman as a matter of fact, and I thought it would be pleasant to be their child. I entered her body to await conception and watched helpless as they fought – something about the death of his father – and she ran to another man for a time. My brother and I were born to the wrong father." She took a deep breath, gathering courage.

"I was unprepared because I didn't know the world, and I wasn't talking with my one information source. I call her The Mother even though she's not one and we aren't really getting along right now. In any event, I was unprepared to defend my brother when we became yet another experiment to the scientists our mother worked for.

"An interloper came into the womb we shared, and tried to change us. I still had my power, enough to protect myself and my brother, but he was so . . . so valiant. He stood before me and took the attack into himself. He shielded me to give me the chance to escape and hide. I went dormant within our womb as my brother developed and was ultimately born and stolen by our scientist father.

"I was born years later. Mother had become entombed in a crystal and when I was born I transported myself, aged to a crawling tot, to a distant field where my brother trained. He found me and took me in, and then discovered that I was his full sister. He'd been told that his mother died at his birth.

"I tried . . . oh how I tried to keep him from becoming a monster. I didn't want to admit that it was going to happen no matter what I did, but because I wasn't talking to The Mother, I didn't know where or when or how best to intervene. It's ironic really, the more I didn't speak with my Mother, the more he listened to his. I thought for a while that it was my fault, that my choosing him had infected him with my madness." She sighed. "It would have happened anyway, but I didn't know that, then.

"When it finally happened, he abandoned me to our natural father, a scientist to whom all living beings were simply experiments to be manipulated. I was forced to help him with his experiments, until I helped two men escape and then joined the one's quest to hunt down and destroy my brother." She looked, almost unwillingly, at the palm of her right hand, and the lines drawn there by scars that would not fade. She did not scar, not normally, but those two lines were more than simple scars.

It had been a whim of the moment, binding herself to the two of them as friends forever, binding the three of them into one whole. It had only made matters worse, though, when the ones sent to find them caught up with them later.

She clenched her fists on her knees. Remembering the scars, or why she had taken them onto her body and into her blood, did her no good. "I would have followed him into the depths of Hell itself, if only he had come back for me." She made herself relax her hands and tears fell down her face. "Never again. I saw Hojo's eyes in Cid's face, watching me, measuring me. As I am now, limited and shackled, unless I run now I won't be able to escape. And I can't protect you if I'm a scientist's playpretty."

"I can protect you, Sister. Vayne can protect you."

"No. You'll understand, someday, but I've got to run so they can't use you against me." She looked at him, a fond expression on her face. "I would do anything to protect you."

"Where will you go?"

She sighed. "Nabradia or Dalmasca, don't know which, yet. You can't tell anyone, though, not even Vayne."

"Not even Vayne?" The very idea seemed incredible, disturbing.

Larsa idealized his older brother. Ivalice felt her heart squeeze at the thought. She had loved her Nii-sama that same way. "No," she said, dissembling slightly about her concerns, "he would try to bring me back here. You know he would."

Larsa nodded reluctantly. "But the invasion. You will be walking into a war zone."

"Better a war zone than the Imperial Palace with Doctor Cid on the loose." She grinned, forcing the expression to relieve Larsa's worries. "If I hurry I might be there for the wedding."

Larsa sighed. "How can I help?"

---  
The next morning Larsa woke to the sounds of quiet confusion in the Palace. By midmorning no less than a dozen guards had asked him if he had seen his sister. By noon he was called in to see his father.

The Emperor sat at his desk and looked at Larsa, who looked back at him, unafraid. "Yes, Father?"

"Your sister is nowhere to be found and as she dotes upon you so obviously it is thought that you might know where she is."

"She is gone, Father." Larsa couldn't keep the catch of restrained tears out of his voice. "She left last night."

The Emperor was silent for a long moment. "Why did she leave?"

"She was in fear for her life and freedom, Father. She left me a letter that I was to give to you," he pulled a sealed envelope from his vest and placed it on the desk, pushing it softly to the Emperor.

He took the letter and quietly opened it. For a time there was only the sound of rustling paper as he read. Then he set it down and covered his eyes wearily. "Did your sister tell you the cause of her fear?"

"Some, Father. She said that no one could protect her. She also named one with ready access to the Palace and hinted that I would also be threatened unless she fled." He almost sounded angry, not at his sister, but that he would be helpless to defend someone in need of such defense.

"Very well. We have much to discuss if we are to maintain the fiction that she is still here."

---  
_… For the Senate, tell them what you will, though I would rather that you not tell them that I am dead. I do not intend to stay away forever, and I sincerely wish to return one day. For the Judges, instruct them that unless I make myself known to them, they are to ignore me. For Vayne, I wish him told nothing, if possible. I do not trust him in the least._

_I fear one day that I may have no choice but to destroy him to protect Larsa. He seems too much like my Nii-sama for my comfort. I do not wish the guilt that burdens me on my Nii-chan._

_Thank you so much for all your generosity towards a foundling such as me. You cannot know how much it means to me. Please forgive me, and know that I still hold to my oath. This I do to protect Larsa, who should one day be Emperor after you._

_As much as I regret the necessity, I have spoken with The Mother, and she assures me that Larsa and I will meet again one day, but she offers few assurances beyond that. . . _

_Your dutiful Daughter, Ivalice Goldeneyes Solidor_


	4. Chapter 4

Reset: A Traveler in a Strange World

Final Fantasy XII Crossover Fanfiction

By Maracae Grizzley

Fanfiction 2009

Chapter Four

Compared to the Imperial City of Archades, Rabanastre, Dalmasca's capitol, was positively provincial. Ivalice smiled, though as she stepped through the gates and into the joyous, hopeful bustle of a city preparing to celebrate a royal wedding. She took a deep breath, filling herself with that hope. Here she would find a way to break her shackles so that she could return to her Nii-chan.

With a bounce in her step, Ivalice set out to explore the city, just as a hand grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the way of a wagon drawn by chocobo – a giant chicken-like creature. "Careful there."

Ivalice looked up into a pair of eyes that seemed to smile at her. It took a moment to see that the eyes belonged to a man in armor. Not a city guard, but a true Knight, with blond hair and a short neatly trimmed blond beard. He looked to be in his early thirties and Ivalice had to struggle to catch her breath. "Th-thank you."

"You have recently arrived in the city, have you?"

She nodded, recovering slightly. "Just didn't expect to meet a knight in shining armor quite so quickly."

He laughed and then bowed briefly to her. "I am Captain Basch fon Ronsenburg, at your service."

"I'm Ivalice. Pleased to make your acquaintance." She looked around slightly. "Are you very busy at the moment?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I was wondering if you could show me around some. I get lost easily and I'd hate to have to call upon another Knight in Shining Armor when I have one right in front of me."

He frowned slightly. "In truth, I was seeing to some supplies . . ."

"Could I help, then?"

"What, a child such as you?"

Ivalice felt her stomach sink. Of course he would only see a fifteen-year-old child. She smiled pleadingly at him. "Please?"

After a moment he nodded. "Very well."

---  
By the end of the day they were fast friends, and he had introduced her to several of the merchants around town, including one Migelo, who turned out to be a kindly bangaa – one of the non-hume races common in Ivalice.

He had also introduced her to the others in the Order of Knights. Apparently her name, while unusual, was not rare enough to excite comment. Her eyes on the other hand . . . .

One of the Knights whistled softly. "That is an extraordinary pair of eyes on your young friend, Captain."

Basch turned to look at Ivalice right as she felt her heart skip. She couldn't let herself be found out. She'd lose all chance and finding a place of her own in this city where she could be trusted. "Why do you say that?" Basch asked.

"I heard tell that the daughter of the Emperor has eyes like that."

Ivalice forced a playful grimace on her face. "And here I was, thinking that I was the only one." The room filled with laughter and Ivalice carefully let out the breath that she was almost holding. Catastrophe averted.

---  
The wedding day dawned beautifully. Ivalice made certain that she was in place to see the procession well ahead of time. Basch had left the day before with a contingent of soldiers to support Nabudis, the capital of Nabradia. Ivalice couldn't stop worrying about them – Nabudis was in the line of attack for the Empire.

The wedding procession made its way through the city towards the cathedral, and the ceremony. Ivalice watched carefully for the nuptial carriage and had to stifle a gasp at what she saw. This was no loveless alliance – this was a true love match. Tears sprang to her eyes, though, when she saw, as clearly as the voice of The Mother shouting at her, the doom of tragedy upon them.

Midday saw the survivors of the fall of Nabudis return. Afternoon saw the soldiers of Dalmasca depart for Nalbina. By next dawn joy had turned to grief and hope to tears as the survivors returned – Basch bearing the fallen body of Lord Rastler. The newlywed princess was a widow at seventeen.

Ivalice watched through a haze of tears as the Knights – led by Basch – planned a counterattack. The Empire's Terms of Surrender arrived with the news of their utter failure.

It was a sorrowful procession that left Rabanastre with their King to go to occupied Nalbina to sign the surrender. Ivalice felt helpless as she watched the last chocobo leave. She wasn't prepared for the shout of warning from the back of her mind.

---  
Basch led the weary survivors back to Rabanastre in defeat. The taste of it set his teeth on edge and left a bitter tang in his mouth. He barely looked up from his chocobo's head in time to see Ivalice standing in the middle of the street. He jerked on the reins and saw her reach out and grab hold of them, stopping the chocobo.

"What do you mean by this?" he asked, not quite shouting.

"Forgive me, I have no choice. You have to ride for Nalbina and you have to leave right now!"

"Explain yourself, child."

Gosh darn it, would he never stop thinking of her as a child? "I have an information source – an incorruptible source. She's whimsical and sometimes temperamental, but what she tells me is truth. The Empire is going to kill King Raminas at the treaty signing!"

Chocobos reared in response to their riders' sudden terror. Basch couldn't believe his ears for a moment. "If you are lying . . ."

"I will surrender my neck to your sword. I swear to you, as of this moment the King is alive – he can stay that way if you get to him in time." She let go of her hold on the chocobo.

Basch turned full circle before he was able to control the animal again. He motioned to the others. "We ride for Nalbina!"

"I'll see to the wagons," Ivalice volunteered, "Please, just hurry! Our Princess is already a widow. I don't want to see her made an orphan, too."

Basch nodded and quickly saluted her with his sword. Their eyes met for a brief moment and Basch could read only honesty in them. For a long time, the memory of those eyes and the honesty he had seen there as she stood on the sorrowful street with wagons of wounded soldiers rolled by her was all that kept him sane.

---  
Ivalice couldn't stop crying as she sat in a room above Migelo's shop with a copy of the proclamation in her hands. Migelo stood nearby, at a loss for words.

_Marquis Halim Ondore IV, I, to the people of Dalmasca:_

_"Sons and Daughters of Dalmasca. I bid you lay down your Arms. Raise Songs of Prayer in their Stead. Prayer for His Majesty King Raminas, ever merciful. A Man wholly devoted to Peace._

_"Prayer, too, for the noble Princess Ashe, who, wrought with Grief at her Kingdom's Defeat, has taken her own life._

_"Know also that Capt. Basch fon Ronsenburg, for Incitement of Sedition and the Assassination of HRM King Raminas, has been found Guilty of High Treason and put to his Death._

_"They who at this late hour choose still the Sword are cut of the same Cloth as the Capt.: Traitors who would lead Dalmasca to her Ruin."_

Migelo started to try again. "I know you were close to the Captain. . ."

Ivalice sniffled loudly. "I can tell you this, for certain, the Princess isn't dead." Migelo looked startled. "That was a neat stunt, though, throwing Vayne off her track like that. As long as he thinks she's dead he won't be trying to kill her." She sniffled again as the tears fell faster. "But the Captain . . . Captain Basch is almost certainly dead. The Empire has no reason to keep him alive. Especially if he didn't actually do this."

"But young Reks . . ."

She shook her head. "Something isn't right with his story. I don't question him, just his story. Besides, I know of at least half a dozen ways to make it appear that someone has done something they haven't done. Especially if the witness hasn't actually seen the deed done – and sometimes even if they have."

"What will you do now?"

Ivalice tried to smile at Migelo, and failed charmingly. "What any other orphan of Rabanastre does – run errands for you and try as best as I can to survive."

---  
Two years is a long time for a man to be left alone with his memories, abandoned by the world and believed dead. Basch fon Ronsenburg hung, chained, in a cage below the dungeons below Nalbina Fortress. For two years he wondered if he had been betrayed by a girl with golden eyes.

Every day he replayed his memory of those few days of their friendship. Every day he searched them for some clue, some hint of deceit. Every day he found himself remembering the honesty in her gaze as he left her at the gates of Rabanastre.

He remembered every detail. The way her lips tightened in frustration when he called her "child". The way her breath caught when someone commented on her eyes and the Imperial Princess. He wondered why he hadn't seen it before.

He wondered at the circumstances that put the Imperial Daughter in the path of the Imperial Army. And on their enemy's side.

She wanted to see the wedding and he believed her. She wanted to help and he believed her. She said that she was his friend and he believed her. She warned him about a threat to his king and he believed her.

He remembered the way her eyes had looked that last time – and wondered if her honesty had been used to deceive.


	5. Chapter 5

Reset: A Traveler in a Strange World

Final Fantasy XII Crossover Fanfiction

By Maracae Grizzley

Fanfiction 2009

Chapter Five

Two years changes a lot of things. The bustling city of Rabanastre was now occupied territory about to welcome (coughcough) the arrival of a new Consul, none other than Vayne Solidor, the son of the Emperor. Ivalice had managed to make a place for herself among the other war orphans, and a couple of friends – fellow orphans Vaan and Penelo.

Vaan dreamed of being a sky pirate and the freedom to go where he wanted when he wanted. He dreamed of a restored Dalmasca. In the meantime, he dreamed of stealing back from the Imperials what they took from Dalmascans. Penelo, though, dreamed of Vaan, and the leadership he showed among the other orphans. If he didn't end up dead or imprisoned first.

If Ivalice dreamed, she didn't talk about it. The others wouldn't understand how freedom could be its own prison, how power was sometimes more trouble than it was worth, or how much she missed a little brother she had only known a year. It didn't help that her hand had taken to hurting a bit, right in the scar on her palm. She would rub at it and wonder if Cloud had ever forgiven himself for not reaching her before Wolf Eyes could throw her in that cavern. She knew . . . just knew that it had been Cloud who had been riding towards them.

Friends forever. That had been the promise. Even if Cloud had been so damaged by Hojo's experiments and Mako poisoning that he was not really aware of himself, much less what was going on when she had cut his hand and then put the three cuts together. She knew, and she wasn't the only one.

Unfortunately, Vaan was being more determined than ever to get himself in more trouble than he could keep his head above. After Vayne's procession, and the speech that Ivalice had no interest in listening to, Vaan had cooked up a half-baked plan, and was actually going through with it.

She needed distraction more than anything, so she talked Penelo into tracking down Vaan, and he was in the Giza Plains, getting a sunstone as an errand for Old Dalan. It didn't take much to talk him into taking them along.

Once they had the sunstone, the three went back to Lowtown, beneath Rabanastre. Penelo took her leave outside Old Dalan's place, with a plea to Vaan to be careful. His murmured apology was almost too low for Ivalice to hear. When she didn't move to leave, Vaan looked at her. "Why are you still here?"

"I think you're up to something and I want in on it."

"Could be dangerous."

"Good, I can watch your back. Look, I'm not trying to stop you. Just lemme come along."

Finally, Vaan nodded. "Alright, let's go talk to Old Dalan."

---  
What Vaan was doing was sneaking into the Palace through the underground Garamscythe Waterway. It meant hacking their way through rats, and bats, and even a few nasty fish. Their goal, though, wasn't just the Palace during the inaugural fete, it was the Palace treasure room, and that meant distracting guards to get a clear run for the secret passage.

Once inside the treasure room, Vaan was the one who found the strangely glowing stone. Ivalice felt a cold tremor in her heart when she saw it. That stone was going to be trouble, but there was no parting Vaan from his prize.

But then a pair of sky pirates showed up, and then guards, and in running from them Vaan and Ivalice found themselves in the middle of a pitched battle as Resistance forces tried to fight their way through.

Between the soldiers, the guards, the Resistance, and the airship taking potshots and everyone somehow the four of them, Vaan, Ivalice, Balthier, the sky pirate, and his viera partner Fran (viera were a form of rabbit-woman mix in stiletto heels) ended up back in the Garamscythe Waterway, trying to make their way through bats, toads, ghosts, and imps to civilization again.

Along the way, they picked up a guest, of sorts, to their little group, a Resistance leader who gave her name as Amalia. Ivalice had to cover a smile. She'd been right. The princess wasn't dead. But remembering the princess brought back other memories as well, and Ivalice tried very hard not to let the others see her tears.

At the end of the Waterway, though, was not freedom and glory with their hard-won spoils. The five of them were surrounded by Archadian soldiers. Ivalice felt a moment of panic when she saw Vayne among them. She stuck to the back of the group and tried to keep someone between her and him at all times.

Balthier looked curiously at her, raising a questioning eyebrow.

"Don't let him see me, please." She barely whispered.

Balthier shrugged and took an accidental-on-purpose step in front of her just as Vayne looked their way. But then Penelo appeared and Balthier had to distract her. For a brief moment Ivalice was completely exposed.

She felt more than heard the shattering of the seal on part of her powers. A small part – but even the smallest touch of her Illusion skills would help right now. She concentrated on seeming completely ordinary, on convincing all the minds around her that she was absolutely unremarkable, not worth noticing. It worked. Ivalice saw Vayne's eyes pass right over her without pausing.

Just to be safe, she kept up the illusion until after the four of them were deposited in the Nalbina Dungeons. Amalia was taken somewhere else.

---  
Vayne watched Judge Gabranth enter his office. "You called for me, your Excellency?"

"I need you to do a favor. When you go to Nalbina to question our guest there, I need you to do so as visibly as possible. I want you to be seen by those kept there."

"Excellency?" Gabranth was curious.

"I believe that I saw my wayward sister in a group I sent to Nalbina. When I looked back to be certain, she was gone. I need to know if she was there. I need to know if she is presenting abilities outside the realm of magick. And I need her to know that if she wishes rescue that it is available."

"If I see her?"

"Be visible. My father's command is still in effect."

Gabranth saluted and then left.

---

Balthier looked up from where he sat, Vaan having charged off to explore. "I wondered where you had gone."

"Hide in plain sight. I had no choice."

"Speaking of that, just why were you trying to disappear so desperately?"

"Vayne Solidor. He knows my face. I'd rather he not know that I was here."

"Ahh, sounds like it would be an interesting story, but . . ."

" . . . but right now, I'm worried about Vaan. There are some real unsavory types here."

"Then, by all means, let us find him, before something untoward happens."

Balthier and Ivalice found Vaan right in time to pull his hide out of a fire. He was bruised, but otherwise okay. The bullies he'd taken on, though, ended up on the shorter end of that stick – before Imperial soldiers showed up accompanying some headhunters after Balthier and, of all things, an Imperial Judge Magister.

The three of them, Balthier, Ivalice, and Vaan, stood close to the edge of the walled combat arena where they had trounced the bullies. Fran appeared behind the gates and caused it to rise just enough for them to roll under it. And just in time, too, as the Judge stepped forward and their hiding spot vanished.

Fran had scented a way out – through the oubliette, though it was blocked by magicks too strong for her to break. They would have to follow the Judge until he opened it.

Ivalice caught a scrap of conversation as she followed Balthier and Fran away from the arena. "Where do you have the Captain?" "We have him in solitary . . ." A sudden, wild hope rose up in her heart, and just as quickly she quashed it. He couldn't still be alive, not after two years. Not after the Empire's, Vayne's, accusations.

On the way they found the repository where their things had been tossed. Ivalice rummaged through her bag for a pen and some paper. She quickly jotted a note, folded it and wrote a name. Then she looked up at three sets of curious eyes. She grinned.

"Vaan empties Imperial pockets. I plan on adding something to one."

Balthier lifted an eyebrow. "Just don't get us caught."

"Of course."

---  
They barely made it through the closing door. There would be no turning back. Balthier quickly halted at the corner and peeked his head around. He didn't like what he saw. None of them did. There were far too many guards for a supposedly unoccupied area of the dungeon.

Balthier didn't have to warn them twice to walk lightly.

It was very close a couple of times, and Ivalice found that she could extend her hide-in-plain-sight ability to cover the four of them, but only just. It tended to play a bit with their ability to see, but they got through to the oubliette gate.

They paused just out of sight as the magician accompanying the Judge opened the magickal wards on the oubliette. Ivalice nodded to the others and then cloaked herself in ordinariness long enough to tuck the note into the waistband of one of the Judge's personal guard and then creep back.

Once the Judge's party was through the gate, they followed.

---  
Balthier paused the group at the ledge above the open room and they peeked over as a guard raised a cage from a pit in the floor. Ivalice saw the man in the cage and clapped both her hands over her mouth to stifle the gasp, and then turned around, sitting against the wall, tears flowing down her face. He was alive. He was alive. Balthier put a hand on Ivalice's shoulder, gently, sympathetically. She looked at him and he raised a finger to his lips and she nodded through the tears.

The Judge removed his helmet to look at Basch. Ivalice took a deep breath and turned to look again at the scene below and her eyes widened. Gabranth looked just like Basch.

"You have grown very thin, Basch."

Now Vaan figured it out. But then, he hadn't known Basch before.

From their hiding place, Ivalice listened to Gabranth and Basch speak, each trying to get their jabs in on the other, and wondered what he was doing still alive. The Empire had no reason to keep him alive, and every reason to silence him forever if he didn't actually do what they accused him of. His very life was a walking scandal since Ondore had announced his death two years before.

Finally, though, Gabranth left and took the soldiers with him.

Balthier signaled to the rest of them and walked down towards the pit where Basch still hung in his cage. Basch had his head down, his thoughts somewhere deep in himself. Ivalice hung back, fighting the desire to run up to him and reach into his cage just to touch him. Basch must have heard their footsteps because he called out. "Who's there?"

Balthier ignored him and looked down, into the pit. "This the place?'

Fran responded. "The Mist is flowing through this room. It must be going somewhere."

Balthier was thoughtful.

Basch tried again. "You! You're no Imperials! Please, you must get me out . . ."

Ivalice bit back a sob that abruptly caused Basch to look at her, seeing her for the first time.

Balthier was almost rude. "It's against my policy to speak with the dead. Especially when they happen to be kingslayers."

Basch was emphatic, turning back to Balthier. "I did not kill him!"

Balthier, though, wasn't entirely convinced. "Is that so? Glad to hear it."

Basch turned to Ivalice, his one sympathetic audience. "Please, Ivalice, get me out of here. For the sake of Dalmasca."

Vaan, though, exploded. "You know him?" He looked at Ivalice, infuriated that someone he thought was a friend could be involved with Basch. "He killed – He killed my brother! He killed everyone! Everyone who died . . ."

"We don't know that, Vaan." Ivalice responded. "There are still too many questions . . ."

Vaan jumped up on the cage, yelling at Basch. "This is all your fault!"

Balthier looked around. "Quiet! The guards will hear."

Noises sounded from down the hallway. They had been heard. Ivalice jumped onto the cage, reaching between the bars to entwine her fingers with Basch's. He looked at her, startled. She whispered, "I never stopped being your friend."

Fran stepped towards the lever that held the cage. "I'm dropping it." She kicked the lever and chain began falling.

Balthier shook his head. "Pirates without a sky." He jumped and caught hold of the rapidly descending cage.


	6. Chapter 6

Reset: A Traveler in a Strange World

Final Fantasy XII Crossover Fanfiction

By Maracae Grizzley

Fanfiction 2009

Chapter Six

When the guards returned they found that the prisoner was gone, cage and all. One of them bent over to pick up a scrap of paper that had fallen from his companion's armor. He read the name on it and paled.

"Sir," he said, approaching the Judge, "I believe this is for you." He handed him the paper.

A glance was sufficient for the name. _Judge-Magister Gabranth_. He opened it up and read the few words.

_Tell my father that I am well._

_Tell Larsa that I miss him terribly._

_Tell Vayne that when I am ready to return to Archades, I'll be the one to let him know._

_Imperial Daughter Ivalice Solidor_

---  
The cage landed with violence. Once all was still Ivalice crawled over to the door and began trying to open the lock. Balthier sighed, rolled his eyes, gently pushed her aside, and calmly picked the locks holding Basch into his prison. "Happy now?" he asked Ivalice. Her response was a heart-stopping grin.

Off to the side, Vaan seethed. He launched himself at Basch, only to be pulled away by Balthier. "Spare us your quiddities."

"Yeah, but – But he's a . . ."

"A traitor. I know. Stay here and fight, if you want." Balthier turned to Basch, who stood. "If you can walk, let's go."

Vaan was incredulous. "You're taking him with us?"

"We could use another sword arm."

Basch's response was quick. "And you have it."

Ivalice saw Basch still rubbing at his wrists. She sighed and gently took one hand from him. She unlatched the bracer and tucked it under one arm as she rubbed the wrist to restore circulation. She heard the phantasmal sound of a seal breaking and her eyes widened as bruises and discoloration faded beneath her fingertips.

"What are you doing?" Basch's voice was rough with repressed emotion.

She had just wanted to help. She hadn't expected this reward. "Apparently my healing gift is re-emerging." Teardrops fell onto his hand as she buckled the bracer back on and then reached for his other arm.

Balthier whistled low. "You are full of surprises today, aren't you?"

She shrugged. "It happens."

Basch stared at her like he was seeing her for the first time. "You can heal? This is no magick . . ."

She nodded, more teardrops falling. "I could do a lot of things that magick cannot. My gifts were stolen from me. It's complicated." It had allowed her to put a man back together after the scientists had spent days pulling him apart. It had allowed her to throw blue-white energy from her hands to avenge the death of a friend, even if she hadn't been that strong since. She put the other bracer back on and then reached up for his reddened shoulders. "Hold still, if you can."

It was the most intoxicating sensation he had ever felt, the warmth of her hands and the easing of his aches and pains. He had to call upon every ounce of self-restraint he had to keep from surrendering to a sudden desire to embrace her. He tried reminding himself that she was only a child, an innocent child who could not possibly be aware of the effect of her actions, but these didn't feel like a child's hands.

Balthier watched with one eyebrow cocked up. He glanced over at Fran and knew that she could see what he did. This was going to be very interesting.

After a moment Ivalice let her hands drop and gave Basch a shaky smile. "You're as good to go as I can get you. I can't do anything for the muscle loss."

Basch bowed to her, remembering the hesitantly shy girl he had met two years ago. "My thanks, for your aid."

Balthier spoke up. "Well, then, if you two are finished, we need to get moving."

Ivalice blushed and fell into place in the back of the group as they began making their way through the tunnels.

---

Later, Balthier took Ivalice aside for a moment. "You know, you aren't being very subtle."

She blinked in surprise and looked up at him. "Is it that obvious?"

He nodded. "I don't know that he's noticed yet, though."

"The first time we met he called me 'child'. I don't think two years has made him revise that opinion."

"Well, then, let me assist you in altering his outlook."

Balthier was rewarded with another heart-stopping grin. And thus the flirting campaign began, though Ivalice didn't think that Balthier really needed an excuse to flirt.

---  
Basch watched the way Balthier teased and flirted, in a gentlemanly way, with Ivalice, a scowl deepening on his face. She glanced towards him, and flushed at his expression, then shook her hair and threw another smile towards Balthier.

It became very apparent to Basch that Ivalice was no longer the child he had left at the gates of Rabanastre. She was fully the age that Princess Ashe had been at the time of her wedding. Old enough to be taken to wife. Though Basch doubted that Balthier was the matrimonial type.

Balthier reached out to grasp Ivalice by the waist and she danced out of his reach and Basch almost came out of his skin. How dare he? Basch forced himself to breathe calmly, and tried not to remember the touch of her hands on his chest and back, or the way her fingers had entwined with his through the bars of the cage, or the tears in her eyes as she looked at him after two years apart.

---  
The group paused so that they could rest a bit, and Basch could put on some plundered equipment. It wasn't much, but it would work.

Ivalice watched Basch practice a few swings with a sword. Even with his hair pulled back, he was shaggy in the face. But she'd never favored boys with their clean faces and no character. A few lines and scars tended to improve a man's appearance, to her mind. Why couldn't he see her the way she saw him?

"Nice moves there, Captain." Balthier nodded towards Basch.

Vaan was still furious at him, though. "You mean 'traitor'."

Ivalice started to come to his defense when Balthier beat her to it. "So they say." His tone indicated a willingness to extend the courtesy of doubt. "But I didn't see him kill anyone."

"My brother did."

Ivalice pushed herself off the wall she had been leaning against. "Please, Vaan, I told you before, there are still questions about that. Your brother . . ."

Basch looked closely at Vaan, seeing a connection he had missed before. "Reks." They all looked at him. "He said he had a brother two years younger. I see. He meant you. Your brother, what became . . ."

Ivalice lowered her eyes in the face of Vaan's anger. "He's dead."

Basch's sorrow was genuine. "I'm sorry."

"It was you who killed him!"

Ivalice sighed. "We don't know that . . ."

Basch silenced her with a motion. "I give you my word: that was not the way of it." The tale Basch told was painful in its simplicity. They left Reks to guard their backs and ran to the King's Chamber, to find it filled with waiting Imperials and the king already dead. His men were cut down around him and he was disarmed, held immobile by two soldiers in the shadows off to the side as Reks entered to see the bodies and a man he thought was his captain, but was not. It was Basch's twin brother, the Judge Gabranth.

Balthier spoke up. "A twin brother? Fancy that." He thought a moment. "Hmm, but still, the pieces fit. I'll give you that much. And he did look like you."

Ivalice knelt in front of where Basch sat. "I always knew that there were ways to deceive a witness. That's why I never believed . . ."

Vaan interrupted. "I don't believe you."

Basch sighed. "Of course not. It was my fault that Reks was there. I am sorry."

Ivalice stood and faced Vaan, who had his back turned. "If you need to much to blame someone, blame me. I'm the one who warned them about the plot to assassinate the King in the first place."

Vaan whirled around to face her and Balthier blinked in surprise. "And just how did you know about it to begin with?" Balthier's question was casually innocent.

"As I told the Order that day, I have an information source. She's whimsical and annoyingly unresponsive at times, but when she tells me something, it is Truth. She shouted the warning at me so loudly that my eyes crossed."

Balthier looked at her a moment. "This has nothing to do, then, with the fact that Vayne Solidor knows your face?"

Vaan blinked in shock and Basch went still.

Ivalice shook her head. "Nothing whatsoever. That one keeps secrets from himself. Why would he confide them to anyone? Much less one anonymous girl-child of Dalmasca."

Balthier shrugged. "A girl-child with golden eyes."

Ivalice was silent, her lips forcibly closed.

Vaan broke the silence. "My brother, he trusted you." Ivalice wasn't sure if Vaan was referring to her, or Basch, or both of them at once. "He trusted you, and he lost everything. How can I believe you?"

Basch stood. "Not me then. Believe in your brother. He was a fine soldier. He fought to the last to protect his homeland." Basch reconsidered. "No. Surely he fought to protect his brother."

Vaan was upset. "You don't know anything!"

Balthier interrupted. "Believe what you want. Whatever it takes to make you happy." He turned away from both of them. "What's done is done."

As they started forward, Basch stopped Ivalice with a hand on her arm. When she turned to look at him, he thought he saw sudden hope die in her eyes. "Please," he said, "I have to know something. Did you send us knowingly into the Empire's trap?"

The anguish in her golden eyes was unmistakable. Her eyes met his and he could see the hurt that his question caused, but he'd had to ask. "No." She shook her head to emphasize the denial. "No, I swear to you. You can't have believed . . . You can't have spent two years thinking that I . . ." She faltered as she could read quite plainly that he had. "I'm so sorry."

He smiled, but it was a grim shadow of his former laugh. "It is well now. I had to ask you myself. I had to know."

"I – I understand." Her eyes said that she truly did, even through the hurt. But there was a wall that hadn't been there before. "Is there anything else, Captain?" She paused a bit before the title, unsure that she still had the right to call him by name.

"Just one." She looked up at him. "Please, call me by name, as you did before. I never stopped being your friend, either."

Her smile was all the sunlight he needed in this dank and dark tunnel.


	7. Chapter 7

Reset: A Traveler in a Strange World

By Maracae Grizzley

Chapter Seven

Just beyond the tunnel the path opened into a cavern where the tracks split in several directions. In the middle, between the tracks, was a great rock. The sword was standing, tip buried in the soil, beside the rock as if it had been waiting for them.

It was, easily, the biggest sword most of them had ever seen. There were two holes in the metal near the hilt and three parallel gashes carved across the blade. The handle was a plain, cord wrapped bar.

Basch looked at it for a moment and then shrugged. Vaan was more interested in glaring at Basch. Balthier looked at the sword and then and Fran with a sardonic lift to his eyebrows. They started forward only to realize the Ivalice wasn't following them.

She was standing completely still, her eyes locked on the blade and her mouth slightly open with surprise. Her face turned several shades of red and white as her mouth worked silently.

Balthier looked at her in concern for a moment. "Ivalice? Is something wrong?"

She found her voice, and it was a grief-stricken wail. "What in the name of Holy is that sword doing here?!"

Basch frowned and walked over to stand beside her. "Ivalice, what is this sword to you?"

She looked up into his face and for a moment he was blindingly aware of how close he was standing to her. "It's the Buster Sword," she told him, "Angeal carried it, though he never used it. Zack inherited it from him. Z-zack gave it to Cloud b-before he died. Cloud used it when he . . . when we . . ." her voice collapsed and she burst into tears.

Basch didn't know what he was expected to do, but he awkwardly put his arms around Ivalice. He didn't know the names, but the concept of an inherited sword, an heirloom weapon, was one he understood quite well. "We'll take it with us. I'll help you return it to the proper hands."

Balthier started to say something but Basch silenced him with a look.

Ivalice struggled to regain control. "I'll carry it. I might not have the strength I once did, but I am still a SOLDIER's sister. I can carry the sword that defeated my Nii-sama."

No one questioned her as she walked over to the weapon, wiping the tears from her face, leaving streaks in their place. The sword, though, was fully as tall as she was. Basch was about to volunteer in her place when she reached up to take hold of the handle.

Blinding light filled the cavern.

When the light faded, and they could see, above Ivalice's hand, grasping the cord-wrapped bar of the sword, was another hand, a gloved hand. Ivalice blinked several times to clear the remains of her tears from her eyes as she followed the hand to a wrist, and then to an arm that was bare to the shoulder, where it met a black-metal pauldron that was attached to a leather suspender over a dark blue turtleneck tank top. She followed the line over to a face that smiled at her gently from beneath dark black hair that flowed behind him in short spikes.

Ivalice blinked several more times to be certain that her eyes weren't playing tricks on her. "Is it . . . is it really you?" She whispered, too stunned to manage anything louder.

His smile widened, and became more gentle at the same time. He reached up with his other hand and gently poked her in the middle of her forehead with his index finger. "Of course it's me, silly."

Her eyes flooded with tears again. "How is this possible? What are you doing here? Why aren't you with Aerith? What is going on?"

The man, who appeared to be about twenty-one years of age, or thereabouts, shrugged hugely. He was big, but there was a near innocence to his face that belied the fact that he stood comfortably with the sword in his hand. "A girl said that you needed me. Aerith has done what she needed to do. She said that she'd follow later, that she'd catch up with us. I made a promise to you, Maracae. Friends forever." He looked up at the rest of the group and tilted his head slightly in curiosity. "Interesting group you've got here, Maracae. Where's Cloud?"

Ivalice sighed sadly. "That's going to take some explaining."

Balthier frowned. "Yes, some explanation is in order. How is it that you came to just appear in this place? How is it that you call Ivalice by another name? And just who are you?"

The man tilted his head in confusion, looking at Balthier. "I don't actually know how I got here. I was hoping Maracae could tell me. I just remember being with Aerith, and a girl told me that Maracae needed me, but I had to choose whether or not to go. I chose and the next thing I know, I'm here. Is there some problem?"

Ivalice sighed softly. "Do you remember anything from before you were with Aerith?" She didn't want to ask; she didn't want to wake bad memories, but she had to know whether or not he remembered his own death.

He thought about the matter for a moment. He looked down at his gloved hand. "I remember making the promise to you and Cloud. I remember being your friend. I don't remember how we got back to Midgar, or how we found Aerith. I just know that she was with me."

Ivalice nodded. "Very well."

Balthier motioned with his head. "Perhaps you could explain matters to him on the way. We do need to extricate ourselves from this place before we have too many more problems."

Ivalice nodded. "I quite agree. Zack . . . in this time and place I am known as Ivalice. I . . . I gave up the name Maracae." She introduced the group to him by name, including Basch, and then looked at them. "This . . . this is Zack Fair. He's a warrior, of sorts. ShinRa calls them SOLDIERs, and they are the elite."

As they made their way through the Barheim Passage, Basch noticed that several things had changed with the sudden and unexpected arrival of Ivalice's friend, Zack Fair. For one, Balthier no longer flirted with her quite so obviously, which was all to the good to his mind. The other was that Ivalice did not tell her friend that he had died.

Basch knew that this was the friend who had died. Her own words before he appeared confirmed it. His life had passed, possibly on a battlefield, and he had bequeathed the sword to another, who had taken up his role as was proper.

For his part, Zack noticed how often his friend would watch Basch out of the corner of her eyes. He did notice the subtle flirting going on between her and this Balthier fellow, but he also noticed the way it always happened where Basch could see it. He did not know how to ask her, though, just what she was doing.

---

They arrived in Rabanastre by way of the East Gate. Ivalice sighed as she remembered standing at this very gate waiting for Basch so that she could give him the warning that sent him to spend two years in a cage. It was a strange sort of pain, being so close to him and yet still being so far apart. Her throat ached and her eyes burned, but she didn't dare break down here. Especially now that she had Zack back against all expectation.

But Zack had never belonged to her, not like that at least. Zack had always belonged to Aerith.

Basch took a deep breath. "I thank you."

Balthier nodded. "I'd avoid crowds if I were you. In this town you're still a traitor, you know."

Basch looked so sure of himself, so strong despite his long captivity. "The Resistance will surely find me soon." He turned to Vaan. "Fates will we meet again. I would pay my respects to your brother." Then he turned to Ivalice, who tried to smile. But what to say to the woman who had grown out of the child he had left? Mere words seemed so empty. "Ivalice."

She blinked rapidly for a moment; the sun must have been glaring into her eyes. "Basch."

He looked at Zack for a moment before nodding to him in respect and acceptance. For a man who had died and returned from that death, he had certainly held his own in battles against monsters and such. Then he turned and walked away.

Ivalice was still watching his back as Balthier and Fran took their leave, too. Balthier nodded to Ivalice, noting that she still stared at the retreating form of the Captain. "I am sorry that things didn't work out as you had hoped." He kept his voice low, more out of respect than any need for secrecy.

"It's not anyone's fault." Ivalice tried very hard to control the waver in her voice. "I do thank you, though, for the attempt."

"Ah, in another time and place I might have entertained hopes for myself, but who am I to fight the Fates?"

Ivalice sighed. "There's only one Fate, and she's my little sister. You wouldn't have to fight her for anything; she's a weakness for rogues and pirates."

Balthier grinned and bowed. "I should meet her someday."

"You'd get along famously."

Then he and Fran left. They were going to stay in Rabanastre for a while before moving on.

Ivalice sighed and looked at Vaan. "I'll see you around. Tell Penelo to find me. I'll want to talk to her after – after you get to show off your treasure." Then she walked away, proud of how she hadn't broken down yet.

Zack looked around at what was obviously a parting-of-the-ways. He clapped Vaan on the back like he would have Cloud. He did like the boy, in spite of the way he didn't seem to like Basch. "We'll see you around, okay kid? I'd stay to talk, but I have to say some things to . . ." he paused, trying to remember Maracae's new name, "to Ivalice."

Vaan nodded and Zack jogged after his friend.

---

Ivalice found a secluded corner of the central plaza to sit down, curl up, and have a good cry. She was still a child to him, or worse, the ploy had worked and he knew that she wasn't a child, but wasn't interested in her in that way. Always a friend, never a girlfriend. For all she knew there could still be the issue of the age difference, not that she cared how old he was. She was far older than his mere thirty-six years, never mind what her body looked like.

Everything just seemed so hopeless. She didn't even know why she'd begun to hope anyway. After the madness, and what she had lost in it, she had given up hope. Decades spent in and out of the teenage years and she hadn't been troubled once by wanting any man to look at her the way she'd seen them looking at her sisters.

And now, a chance meeting on a crowded street threw all that out the proverbial window and it was like she was a teenager again for real. Always wanting the one who didn't want her. She was so stupid, such an idiot.

She noticed the way the sun suddenly faded into shadow and couldn't even stop crying long enough to look up. She heard a patient sigh and then the sound of someone sitting down beside her. The sunlight reappeared and an arm draped itself around her shoulders, pulling her against a man's chest.

"Out with it, Maracae. They might call you Ivalice, and I might even call you that where they can hear, but you're still Maracae. You're still my friend. What's going on? What are you not telling me that has you all twisted up like this?"

She couldn't stop crying long enough to explain. She wasn't even certain she knew how to explain. He sighed and looked up at the sky for a moment. "The sky's pretty today, you know that? Not a cloud in it. But I suppose that's because this is a desert, huh? But cloudy skies can be pretty, too. And even rainy ones have their appeal. Storms pass, you know. Storms always pass." He sighed again. "Come on, Maracae, what's going on?"

Finally she was able to force the tears to subside enough to form words. "He thinks I'm just a child."

Zack frowned. "Which one? The older guy? I wondered what was going on with you two." He shrugged. "Well, you are a bit on the young side right now. I've been meaning to ask what happened to you. You're younger than I remember you being."

A touch of anger crept into her voice as the tears subsided even further. "I was attacked on my way to Midgar. I was going to go see Cloud again. The rat bastard that ambushed me couldn't kill me directly so the last thing he did was throw me in a cavern that was slowly finishing the job for him. For every day I spent there, I lost two days off my age." She shuddered in memory. "Watching my life shrink away like that was awful."

Zack was quiet for a moment. "How did you get away? I mean, obviously you did, you're here."

She sighed. "A darling, sweetheart of a boy found me while out with his older brother. He was . . . he was so much like I used to be, always following after Nii-sama . . ." They both remembered the jokes that would quietly pass through the SOLDIER ranks about her older brother and his tagalong. She took a deep breath. "He took me home with him like I was a lost puppy. He even got his father to adopt me, gave me a name and everything."

He nodded. "So that's how come they call you Ivalice."

"Yeah, but I had . . . I had to run away. I couldn't protect him, Zack. I'm sealed and powerless and I couldn't protect him." She took a deep breath to steady herself. "There was a scientist who had started to take an interest in me."

Zack hissed in anger. He still remembered what had been done to the three of them over four torturous years in Hojo's curious care. "I'm here now," he murmured, "and neither of us is ever going to have to fear another scientist again, okay?" He tightened his arm around her shoulders for a moment. "So how does this tie in to that old guy?"

She slapped at him, but she laughed, too. It was what he intended. "Basch is a good man, no matter what others might think, and he's not that old. He's only thirty-six." She sighed. "But I don't think he's interested in me that way." Her voice faded slightly. "The ones I want never seem to be interested in me that way."

Zack shrugged. "The other guy seemed interested enough. I don't suppose you'd be interested in that kid, I think his name was Van?"

She chuckled. "His name's Vaan, and no, I'm not interested in him. He's too much a boy still. Balthier . . ." she shrugged, "he's a shameless flirt and a ladies' man to boot. He'd offered to help me try to change how Basch looked at me, but I don't think it worked."

He smiled at her and offered to help her stand. "Your chance will come along eventually, I know it. Aerith and I found each other, right? You'll find someone, too."

She nodded and accepted his help as they both stood and she wiped the remains of the tears away. "He's still my friend, at least. If he ever finds someone he wants, though, I'll move heaven and earth to make sure that he is happy." She sighed. "I need to find Vaan and see if he's had a chance to show off his new treasure to Penelo. Are you going to come with me?"

Zack smiled. "Of course. I wouldn't miss my chance to actually see a different world for anything. This place has chocobos and actual, live Moogles. It's amazing!"

She chuckled. "Come on then. I'll show you Migelo's store. That's the best place to look for any of Rabanastre's orphans."

* * *

And so we have Zack making his first appearance in the story, other than the ephemeral one in Chapter 1. Yippee! And this also begins the point in the story where what I had is going to be severely overhauled in the interests of making room for Zack and, later, possibly Aerith too. I'm arguing with myself like you wouldn't believe over whether or not to incorporate other FF VII characters along the way. *sigh* The addition of Sephiroth alone would completely demolish the existing FF XII plot. He's too attention mongering to handle a secondary or a bit part. He'd want to be center stage and, unfortunately, in a fight between the two of them, Vayne would lose.

I would very much like to hear something from my readers about this tale, and how it is developing. Thank you for taking the time to stop by and read my stories.


	8. Chapter 8

Okay, so it's not great, but it seems to do the job. *sigh* I must say, I didn't expect Zack to step in like that, but I'm not surprised. It will, though, heavily alter what was to have been the story from this point. I'm open to suggestions and/or votes. In the original story there was actually some serious interest on Balthier's part, but it wasn't explored more because I didn't find out about it until things were pretty well set in stone for Ivalice and Basch. Right now, everything is up in the air. I would love to hear what my readers have to say about the story and about the alterations I'm making to it.

* * *

Reset: A Traveler in a Strange World

By Maracae Grizzley

Chapter Eight

Ivalice and Zack found Kytes looking after Migelo's shop, with no sign of Migelo or Penelo in sight. He waved at her. "Hey! You escaped, too?" He looked at the SOLDIER in curiosity. "Who's he?"

Ivalice didn't have time to waste on explaining the unexplainable. She shook her head. "Never mind that right now. Where's Vaan?"

Kytes frowned. He didn't like Ivalice just not answering a question, but he wasn't going to challenge her on the issue. "Vaan came by looking for Penelo and Migelo. They're not here right now. I told him that Old Dalan had an errand for me, and he offered to do it." Ivalice turned and ran. "Hey," Kytes called after her, "have you been crying?"

Zack paused before he followed Ivalice. He looked at the boy. "She's gonna be alright. Trust me." Then he had to hurry to keep up with his friend.

---

The quickest way to Dalan's was across the fountain square to South Gate and from there to Lowtown. Ivalice ran into Old Dalan's chamber, with Zack just behind her, in time to see Vaan standing there, holding a sword of the old Order in his hands. Vaan was talking.

" . . . I wanted to show her what I got from the palace, but I haven't been able to find her anywhere. Can you let me know if you hear anything?"

Dalan smiled. "You can just leave that to me." Both of them looked at Ivalice and Zack as they ran in. "Yes?"

Ivalice smiled at Dalan and then looked at the sword in Vaan's hands. "What are you doing with that?"

Vaan looked down at the sword. "Dalan wants me to deliver it to someone called Azelas."

Ivalice nodded. "Mind if I come along?"

Vaan shrugged. "Sure, I guess."

Dalan smiled large. He was old, and loved his pipe, but he wasn't stupid, or slow, or apt to come to false conclusions. His eyes and ears had already reported to him about the events at East Gate, and he could see the remains of tears on her cheeks. He knew where the boy was going and who he would find there. A slight chuckle escaped him. "Yes, yes, I should think that an excellent idea. Take the girl with you, Vaan, but mind that you are the one who delivers the sword."

Vaan nodded. "Thanks, Dalan, for everything."

Ivalice nodded as well. "Okay, let's go."

Dalan interrupted them with a slight cough. "And who would be this friend you bring with you? There is more than a touch of the Order to him, as well. Surely this is a man who understands about honor."

Ivalice looked at her friend and met his eyes with her own for a moment before turning back to Dalan. "Dalan, be known to Zack Fair, a warrior knight from a land further than the Empires." She looked back at Zack. "Zack, this is Old Dalan, a very wise man deserving of respect."

Zack nodded to the old man. "Good to meet you."

Dalan smiled wide. This was proving ever more entertaining by the minute. "I am pleased to make your acquaintance as well. Vaan, Ivalice, see that the sword is delivered safely, please."

They nodded to him and then the three of them left, Ivalice following a step behind Vaan, and Zack leaving a step in front of him.

Dalan sighed to himself. "And so it is done. But will it be enough to remind him of what the Order once meant?" Then he fell to chuckling again at the thought of the runaway Imperial Daughter in love with a Captain of the Order of Knights of Dalmasca, and with a stranger Knight at her side, a dear friend indeed. Young people were so entertaining.

---

Vaan and Ivalice and Zack entered the enclave of the Rabanastran Resistance cell to the sound of men arguing.

"Then what do you make of Ondore's proclamation? Are you suggesting they fooled even the Marquis?"

"What if a Judge killed the King, not the Captain? That would explain everything, wouldn't it?"

"In that case, the Captain would be brother to a Judge! How are we to trust such a man?"

Then Basch appeared and all coherent thought vanished from Ivalice's mind. He had cleaned up, trimmed his hair and beard, and changed into new clothes. He wasn't the Knight in Shining Armor that she had met two years before, he was better. She ached to run into his arms, but she didn't have that right. She could call him by name, but had no other intimacy allowed to her.

Zack, she could hug. Zack, she could tease. She didn't have that right with Basch.

Basch saw Ivalice standing behind Vaan, beside her friend Zack, and immediately he saw the stains on her cheeks from recent and prolonged weeping. White-hot rage filled his heart. He would find that pirate and slow roast him over a fire. Basch was convinced that the flirting and teasing of the Barheim Passage had caused a genuine attachment on Ivalice's part. He was going to sit down and have a long, serious talk with Balthier about the hazards of toying with the affections of impressionable young girls. Especially since he had abruptly stopped the flirting when her friend showed up.

He briefly considered the possibility that she had been crying because of finding her friend again, but there was something in the way the man stood, the way his arms were crossed over his chest, and the way he met Basch's eyes with his own, unafraid and somehow accusing. No, those weren't tears of unexpected joy, not like the ones she had shed in the Passage itself.

Someone, most likely that Pirate, had hurt Ivalice. And Basch was going to make him regret it.

Captain Vossler Azelas saw Basch's entrance. "Now there is the Basch that I remember."

Basch turned to Vossler. "Then will you fight again at my side?"

The men who had been arguing broke in.

"His word alone convinces me of nothing."

"I'd take his word over that of a mouthpiece Marquis!"

"Then you'd name Reks liar with him."

Vaan charged forward at that, unable to remain silent any longer. "My brother was no liar!"

Basch spoke up. "Just the opposite. Reks was the witness they needed. They had to make it appear as if I had killed the King – Reks bears no blame." He looked at Vaan. "The Fates have willed it."

Vossler stepped over to Vaan. "So this is Reks's brother." He reached out and roughly yanked the sword out of Vaan's hands. "Your words may convince a child, but they weigh too lightly on the scales for my taste. Our paths will remain separate."

Ivalice stepped forward. "What about my words?" It was almost a challenge. "I never believed Ondore's proclamation. I always said that witnesses could be deceived, that appearances could be false. I have always maintained that he could be innocent."

"And your words sent us there in the first place." It wasn't quite a shout. "You followed him like a lost puppy. He was a hero to you. How could you have done anything but believe him innocent?"

Zack looked over at Ivalice. "I remember another hero you used to follow like that, once upon a time." They both remembered how she had followed her brother, the hero, around everywhere, always at his heels, always thinking the best of him.

Ivalice flushed and looked over at Zack. "Basch never betrayed me. He never betrayed anyone." She looked back at Vossler, her eyes angry. "I know the shadow cast by a fallen hero. I know what happens when the great ones betray their oaths and turn on those who trust them. I know the darkness of a traitor's soul, and Basch is not that traitor. He never was and he never will be. You are a fool to distrust him."

"Our paths will remain separate." Vossler was adamant.

Zack shook his head. He did not understand some people. He just didn't know enough about the situation to make any sort of informed addition to the conversation. He trusted Maracae, though. She was his friend, and she knew the terrible cost of being betrayed.

"Do you not think Amalia worth saving?" Basch's voice was softly accusing. He didn't say anything about the way Ivalice vehemently defended him. He wasn't certain how to respond to it. He knew, though, that her words betrayed a pain that she had never told him. Not that they had much of a chance to exchange confidences.

Vossler reacted to the barb. It had hit too close to home. He turned away. "I hold men's lives in my hands. I must see foes in every shadow. The night we moved against Vayne, he knew. I will not chance such disadvantage again. I must treat you as I would Ondore – as I would any abettor of the Empire."

"Like Hell!" Ivalice did shout. "Ondore was protecting Amalia. Just as I would have. Just as Basch would have. And what makes you all-fired certain that Vayne isn't counting on you being once-bitten-twice-shy? At holding allies at arm's reach because you'd been burned by that conniving backstabbing pit viper?! If he knew then, what makes you think he doesn't know now?"

Zack blinked in surprise. Those were probably the harshest words he had ever heard Maracae speak. She didn't even speak of her brother in those terms.

Basch was just as angry, and put his arm out to keep himself between Ivalice and Vossler. "Then what will you do? Hold me here in chains?"

For a moment they locked eyes. Then Vossler tossed the sword that Vaan had delivered to Basch, who caught it easily. Basch shook his head. "Some things never change. Do they?"

Ivalice snorted. "Ondore had one thing right. You are cut of the same cloth. You're just going crossways of the weave."

"Be that as it may." Vossler told Ivalice, then turned to Basch. "Listen to me, Basch. Your cage may have no bars, but it is a cage. The eyes of the Resistance watch unblinking."

"Let them watch. I know something of cages." He turned and stalked out with Ivalice following close behind.

She paused long enough to throw out one last line. "Careful, Captain Azelas, eyes that don't blink lose their vision."

Zack shook his head in disbelief and made sure that he reached the door before Ivalice did, so he could hold it open for her. The gesture caused Basch to lift a curious eyebrow. He was definitely going to have to talk to Zack when he got a chance.

After a moment of indecision, Vaan followed them out the door.

---

Outside the enclave, Basch turned to Vaan. "Our paths keep crossing, yours and mine. It's more than coincidence."

"It's annoying." Vaan said. Ivalice hid a grin.

"I'm sorry." Even Basch was amused. "Allow me one last annoyance: a favor to ask. I want you to take me to Balthier. Even caged birds need wings." And he could have that talk with the sky pirate. He caught a glance at the expression in Zack's eyes and realized that maybe he wasn't the only one who needed to talk to the Pirate.

Vaan agreed. "This makes us even."

"Even?" Basch was confused.

"For Nalbina. We couldn't have done it without you." Vaan glanced at Ivalice. "Any idea where to find Balthier?"

Neither of them expected to hear Ivalice laugh. "He's a sky pirate, Vaan, where do you think he is? He's in a tavern, treating himself to a well-earned drink, and trying to pinch the serving girls as they pass."

"Ahh, the Sandsea."

"The Sandsea it is, then. But can we walk above ground? There's an exit just across the way and I really need some sunlight. I'm sick of dark and tunnels."

Vaan nodded and Basch had to agree with them. He also felt a moment of hope that perhaps his conversation with Balthier wouldn't have to become violent. After all, he did need a favor from the man.

They were heading out when Basch felt a hand on his arm and he looked over to see Zack. He nodded and they fell to the back of the group. "Yes?" he asked.

"Do you have any interest in Mar – I mean, Ivalice at all?" The dark haired man was very serious, his expression almost devoid of his usual joviality. "If you don't, it's alright, but you should know that it's hurting her."

Basch almost stopped dead in his tracks. "What?" For a moment he hoped he had heard the man wrong. He could not have said what he thought that he said.

Zack sighed. "So you aren't interested in her. I was hoping that you were."

Basch blinked and tried desperately to get his heart to start beating again. "She is just a child. I cannot . . ." His words trailed off. Who was he trying to fool?

Zack shook his head. "No, she's not. She wouldn't tell you, but I know it for a fact. I don't know how long she's actually been alive, but she was only a year or two younger than me, back when we escaped from Nibelheim. That would have been several years ago for her, I think. She mentioned magic turning her younger and she's having to grow up all over again. I don't understand magic all that well, when it's not materia, but I know that she's not like the rest of us."

Basch nodded slowly. "I shall have to think on this." He took a deep breath. "You hoped for my interest in your friend?"

Zack nodded. "She's been alone too long. She needs someone to protect her, someone she can trust. Are you strong enough?"

Basch looked forward, at Ivalice and Vaan. "I cannot answer. Not yet. I have responsibilities and a duty left unclaimed for too long. I may not have the freedom to seek what you say that she would offer."

"Just try not to take too long. Next time the other guy might be serious when he makes his move."


	9. Chapter 9

Gak, it's been forever and three durn days since I last updated this story. I swear to you, I started composing this chapter when it was still 2009. *sigh* I'm still not real happy with it, but here it is. Looking forward to any and all comments from my readers since they are the ones who can sometimes bring a dead story back to life.

* * *

Chapter Nine

Balthier sighed for the third time in fifteen minutes and Fran blinked her eyes curiously at him. "What is causing this distraction?" She finally had to ask.

He shook his head, as if trying to clear it. "Nothing, Fran." Nothing, right, who was he trying to fool? Certainly not Fran. Maybe it was himself. He wanted to believe that nothing was wrong, that nothing had changed in him.

But he couldn't lie to himself any more than he could lie to Fran. She shook her head at him. "It is most certainly not 'nothing' if it has you so discomfited that you are not even teasing the barmaids, and have done nothing more than lift your glass and set it down again."

Balthier looked at the still-full glass of alcohol and was surprised to notice that he had not yet even tasted any of it. Well, that was something he could correct quickly enough. He took the glass in his hand and purposefully downed half of it in one smooth draught. He set the glass down again as if in defiance of his own stupidity.

Fran chuckled at him, but low. "It is the girl, isn't it? She is enamoured of the Captain, and you thought to help her and found yourself caught unawares."

There were days when Balthier could almost resent Fran's insight. "I am not." He put a touch too much heat into his voice, the strength of his denial making the truth that much more evident. He sighed again. "Besides, she doesn't see me as anything like that when she has her Captain to cast mooning eyes upon."

"And the stranger warrior who appeared? You do not think him to be a possible rival for the Captain?"

The very thought was enough to make Balthier choke on his ale. "Why don't you tell me? You're the one who can read men so well."

She smiled softly. "He is her friend, nothing more and nothing less. But still, there are friends and then there are friends, are there not?"

That didn't help Balthier's mood any. She was right, though. Until he saw more of the man, he had no way of knowing which kind of friend he truly was. But seeing more of him meant seeing more of Ivalice, and that had the potential to cause no end of problems for Balthier.

She was . . . she was fascinating. A mix of innocent and vixen with a dash of true bleak pain running alongside. Power that he did not understand with a story she wasn't sharing, and anything he didn't understand was that much more appealing. And to top it all off, she had her eye fixed on someone else. If there was one thing guaranteed to make Balthier look twice, it was a female who didn't look twice at him.

He was the leading man.

He muffled a growl of frustration. He wasn't getting anywhere by sitting here and ruminating on the subject. Either he made Basch see the treasure that was within his grasp . . . or he made a move to steal her away from him.

And the more he thought about that idea . . . the more appealing it became.

--- --- ---

The four of them were passing by the central fountain when they heard the voice call out. "Zack! Maracae!"

Ivalice stopped dead still at the sound of the feminine voice and then she whirled to see a young woman with rather long dark blonde hair tied up with a ribbon in back wearing a pink dress. Basch and Vaan stopped to look at what was going on as Ivalice turned several colors and the young woman ran up to wrap her arms around Zack.

For his part, Zack hugged her close with a smile. "Missed you."

"Missed you, too. Told you I'd find you again." She released him and then turned and hugged Ivalice. "Maracae, how are you doing?"

Ivalice was so stunned that she couldn't return the hug for a moment, but when she did there were tears flowing down her face. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "I'm so sorry. Forgive me, Aerith."

Aerith sighed and smiled. "You and Cloud, always apologizing for the wrong things. It doesn't matter anymore. I'm content. We all made our choices, then and now."

Ivalice wiped the tears away with one hand, leaving streaks behind on her cheeks. "Are you going to be able to stay?"

The other girl shook her head slowly. "Not right away. I still have things to do, but I'll return. I promise. I had to check on you, though, make sure that you were alright." She looked over at Zack for a moment. "Both of you."

Zack smiled and managed to look almost sheepish while Ivalice sighed. "I'm alright, Aerith," she said slowly, "I'm just having a rough time of it right now."

Aerith nodded slowly. "I have something for you." She took one of Ivalice's hands and laid an oval stone set in a golden bracket in her palm. The stone was about one and a half inches by three inches in size and was flat on the back but rounded slightly in front. It was mostly a greenish blue color but was streaked by veins of red running through it. "Here."

Ivalice looked at the stone in surprise. "What is this? It's not Materia . . ."

Aerith shook her head. "It's something different, but it's similar."

Ivalice smiled and hugged her old friend, then, keeping back more tears with effort. "Thank you, Aerith, for everything."

Aerith smiled and whispered softly, "Thank you for helping Cloud." She walked over to Zack and for a moment all they did was look at each other. She smiled and he nodded slowly and then she turned and walked away. It didn't take long for her to vanish into the crowd.

Ivalice quietly unwound a red ribbon from around her wrist and threaded it through the brackets on the stone. Then she tied the ribbon, stone and all, around her head so that it set in the middle of her forehead like a diadem. Then she looked over at Zack and he nodded to her and she nodded back.

She turned to Basch and Vaan, "Let's go find that sky pirate and help a caged bird fly, shall we?"

--- --- ---

The entered the Sandsea and spied Baltheir sitting at a table in the upper balcony with Fran and, of all people, Migelo. They seemed to be deep in conversation as the three of them walked up the steps. Ivalice looked at Zack for a moment in confusion before rushing up the steps to hear the exchange.

"As I said, a misunderstanding." Balthier was seated and lifted a curious eyebrow as he glanced at Ivalice and noted the new jewel that she was wearing.

"Misunderstanding?!" Migelo stood as if cornering the sky pirate. "What I am understanding is that they took Penelo because of you!"

Ivalice gasped in surprise and Vaan charged forward. "What?" he asked, "What about Penelo?"

Migelo saw them. "Oh, Vaan. They've taken Penelo! And there was a note – a note for this Balthier! Come to the Bhujerba mines, it said."

"It's Ba'Gamnan." Fran said. "He was in Nalbina."

Migelo was plainly distraught. "If anything were to happen to that sweet child . . . Why, I've her parents' memory to consider!" He looked at Balthier with an expression that brooked no argument. "You're going to her aid, and that's that. It's what you sky pirates do, isn't it?"

Balthier turned stern. "I don't respond well to orders." He paused. "You do know that the Imperial fleet is massing at Bhujerba?"

Ivalice stepped forward. This argument could last for days if the natural stubbornness of the two were not distracted by something else. "Not orders then." Balthier looked at her in silence and Basch watched something unspoken pass between them. "Please, Balthier, I am begging you. Penelo is as much my friend as Vaan's, as much my friend as any I have. For all that is not in your power to do, this is in your power." Balthier looked troubled and glanced at Basch and then at Zack, who watched the exchanges with almost brotherly interest.

Vaan was impatient. "Fine, then, I'll go! You at least have an airship, don't you? Just get me there and I'll find Penelo myself."

Basch spoke up. "I'll join you."

Vaan looked at him, confused. "Huh?" Ivalice closed her eyes momentarily.

"I have some business there as well." Basch explained.

Balthier looked at him. "An audience with the Marquis, by chance?" For a moment they simply looked at each other until Basch almost smiled and broke the contact.

Vaan decided to play his final card. "Balthier, just take us and this is yours." He pulled out the stone and Ivalice felt the momentary chill again and a vague sense of weakness. She did not like that stone.

Fran shook her head. "The gods are toying with us."

Balthier was backed into a corner and he didn't like it. He stood. "Make yourselves ready. We leave soon." He and Fran started to walk away.

Ivalice tried to smile at him. "Thank you, Balthier." Again, something unspoken seemed to pass between them and Basch's eyes narrowed watching them. After what Zack had told him . . . he had to wonder about the sky pirate and quietly resolved to have a talk with the man.

Vaan and the others followed Balthier downstairs. Ba'Gamnan's note could only be referring to the Lhusu Mines in Bhujerba. Balthier's ship was docked in the Aerodrome by the West Gate. As soon as they were ready, they would leave for the sky continent of Dorstonis and the city of Bhujerba.


	10. Chapter 10

Well, in recompense for waiting so long on the last chapter, here's the next one. Looking forward to comments.

* * *

Chapter Ten

The flight to Bhujerba was long enough.

While Vaan talked with Ivalice and Zack, the young man was very interested in the stories of battles that Zack was able to share, Basch found a moment to take Balthier to the side for that talk that he needed to have.

"I have been informed that your actions in the tunnels were not entirely in seriousness." He kept his manner stern.

Balthier kept his eyes on the control panel in front of him as he flew the Strahl, but he still shook his head in disbelief. "Oh, they would have been, had her attention not been firmly fixed on another target." He couldn't quite keep out the bite of frustration out of his voice.

Basch surprised him by sighing. "So I have also been informed."

The sky pirate blinked several times. "Who finally told you? Vaan's too clueless and she would not have confessed . . ." He paused. "Ahh, that friend of hers. So now you know for whose benefit that little show was arranged. So what is the purpose of this little confrontation?" He lifted a curious eyebrow and glanced at Basch from the corner of his eye. "Warning me away from her? I assure you, her attention does not waver."

Basch shook his head. "No, part of the information I received was a warning that you might one day pursue her in earnest. I wished to know how likely it is that such a day might come."

Balthier closed his mouth firmly to keep his jaw from dropping all the way to the floor. Was this some sort of convoluted trap? What in the seven skies did this dishonored knight want with asking that sort of a question? As it was he lifted that curious eyebrow a little further. "Oh? Seeing what sort of competition there is? Trust me, she's focused. It would take a very determined man indeed to distract her."

The knight persisted. "Are you that determined a man?"

Balthier actually turned his head to look at Basch's intent expression. "What is your purpose? All you have to do is reach your hand out and she'll fall into your grasp without any effort whatsoever. You almost make me think that you want the challenge for her."

Basch sighed sadly. "Her friend said that she has been alone too long. She is not as she seems, or so he tells me. She is in need of someone and it appears that we two are the choices at hand. I have a duty that might very well prevent my claiming what she offers. However, I cannot allow a friend of mine to become the victim of one who is interested in only a momentary dalliance."

The sky pirate narrowed his eyes in thought for a moment. "What precisely are you offering?"

Basch took a deep breath. "That I would welcome a rival were that determined man to be a rival in earnest. Above all else she is my friend, and has remained loyal to that friendship. I cannot do less than that for her." He leaned back. "I will make no move to accept or reject her desires so long as my duty lies between us. I do not know how long that will be. A rival would put that time to good use, were he determined and sincere."

Then the knight stood and left the cockpit to return to where the others were still discussing battles and adventures.

--- --- ---

They arrived in the Bhujerba Aerodrome to see Imperial soldiers. Basch grunted in anger. Balthier stood beside him. "Easy."

The soldiers were searching for someone, and they couldn't find him.

Balthier spoke in a low voice, "You're a dead man. Don't forget it. And no names." The last was directed as much at Vaan as at Basch.

"Of course." Basch understood.

Zack glanced at Ivalice curiously. She shrugged at him. "It's complicated," she murmured. "Ya know how Shinra wasn't too happy with us after Nibelheim?"

He nodded in understanding. "I see."

---

They stepped out of the Aerodrome into sunlight. "The Lhusu Mines are just up ahead." Balthier told them. "Though I do hear there's not much left there these days."

Just then a voice spoke up, a voice that caused Ivalice to freeze still, her eyes widening with shock and surprise. "You're on your way to the Mines?" The group turned to look at the well-dressed fourteen-year-old boy who hopped down from the bridge wall and walked over to them. Basch was surprised to see that Ivalice was actually trembling. Zack looked at her and then at the boy and chuckled softly. "Then please," the boy said, "allow me to accompany you. I've an errand to attend to there."

Basch looked from Ivalice, who had not yet turned to look at the boy, to the boy himself, who seemed to be trying not to look at her, and then he looked up to meet Zack's gaze and then he looked back at the boy. "What manner of errand?"

The boy looked at all of them. "What errand? I might ask the same of you."

Balthier took the hint. "Right. Come on, then."

Vaan was surprised. "What?"

The boy nodded. "Excellent."

"Do me a favor," Balthier continued, "and stay where I can keep an eye on you? Should be less trouble that way."

"For us both." The boy replied.

Vaan looked him over. "So what's your name?"

Ivalice slowly turned around. "He's called Lamont." There were tears in her eyes that were mirrored in the boy. "He – he's my brother." She seemed to be trying very hard to maintain composure. She smiled at Lamont. "You've grown."

He tried to smile back. "It has been two years, Sister. I have been told that it happens to everyone my age."

She opened her arms and he ran into them. "I have missed you, Nii-chan." She hugged him close and then let him go.

Zack smiled at the boy. "You're very lucky to have her for a sister. I've known her a long time."

Lamont looked up at Zack and tilted his head to the side. "You know my sister?"

Zack nodded. "Yeah, she and I go way back."

Vaan nodded to himself. "Don't worry." He put a friendly hand on the boy's shoulder, "I don't know what's in that mine, Lamont, but you're in good hands." He smiled. "Right, Basch?"

The adults looked surprised and Basch groaned but Lamont seemed to take it in stride as they set out and Vaan introduced the rest of them, all by name.

---

It didn't take long at all to reach the entrance to the Lhusu Mines, reported by Balthier to be one of the richest in Ivalice. Basch believed that it would be under Imperial guard but, according to Lamont, the Imperial Army wasn't allowed in Bhujerba except with special leave.

They had only just entered the mine when an Imperial inspection party approached the exit. A Judge walked with another nobleman of Bhujerba. Lamont identified him as Marquis Ondore. Ondore was diverting magicite to Vayne through secret channels, but he wasn't very happy about it.

Lamont speculated that his famed neutrality had slipped a bit in favor of the Empire. Balthier pointed out the persistent rumors that Ondore was supplying the Resistance. Lamont was skeptical of the rumors.

Ivalice spoke up. "He's walking a very narrow path. The Empire killed his friend. He cannot forgive them. But he cannot fight them; Bhujerba would be smashed like an annoying fly. He cannot cooperate with the Empire; seeming too friendly would arouse suspicion. But he has to cooperate. So he does what he has to do to protect his people and shows just enough resentment to forestall suspicion, but not enough to be annoying and a target for military action."

Balthier sighed. "I don't know which of you I'm more curious about. Your insight or his information. Who did you say you were again?" The question was only half-rhetorical. Basch's comment about Ivalice being other than what she seemed had his curiosity up as much as her other attributes had his curiosity going in other directions, and he had yet to find a way to begin breaking through her fixation on her Captain.

Vaan was impatient. "What difference does it make? We have to find Penelo."

Now Lamont was curious. "And Penelo is your . . ."

"She's a friend." Vaan told him. "She was kidnapped and taken here."

Ivalice put a hand on Lamont's shoulder. "She's also my friend, and has been for two full years while I lived with the other war orphans in Rabanastre."

Lamont was thoughtful as they continued into the mine.


End file.
